You made the decision to lactate and breast feed without the constraints of pregnancy or child bearing; you read our files, did the research and began the process of inducing. Each stimulation session was undertaken with confidence and zest; you were sure results would soon be forthcoming. Yet after weeks of diligent effort, the joys of lactation has been an elusive reward. An undertaking that began with joy and confidence, is now turning to disappointment and self doubt; you are beginning to ask, « what am I doing wrong? ».

Lactation is a natural element of the female essence. The female body is a wondrous biochemical entity, ready to give forth the bounty of breast milk, even when pregnancy is not part of the equation. To lactate without pregnancy, all that is required is stimulation of the mammary glands, nipples and areolas. If the process is really this simple, then why a have those beautiful sprays of milk eluded you? To understand why you have not reached the level of lactation you expected, we need return to the beginning of the process and seek answers there. It is likely that you are not doing anything wrong; rather, it is more likely that you may have missed a key element in the process of inducing lactation or relactation.

Think back to that moment you decided to lactate; what was the first thing you did after you made the decision? Likely, your first action was to discover how to induce lactation. You may have read all you could about inducing and relactation, perhaps even sought the advice of others, then formulated a plan that would, hopefully, take you to full lactation. However, what you may have overlooked is the « Why » of inducing lactation! How, is the method; why, is the motivation! Inducing lactation can be a dominating factor in any woman’s daily routine, so consider why you have this strong need to lactate? Answering the question of, « Why? », can often be the key to successfully motivating yourself with any endeavor.

To understand why you feel this need to lactate, let’s take a look at the process of childbirth and breast feeding. The human instinct to procreate is, obviously, the dominating factor with childbirth and neonatal breast feeding; however, there is more going on than just the child’s need for food and nurturing. When you observe a new mother breast feeding her child, (or perhaps recall from your own experience as a mother), she radiates the epitome of inner peace and inner strength. The new mother seems to, instinctively, be able to anticipate the needs and wants of her child. A subconscious bond of metaphysical inner communication has formed between mother and child; a bond which often lasts a lifetime.

A woman’s spiritual ability and need to expand beyond her own physical body isn’t just limited to neonatal breast feeding, it is an fundamental element of womanhood. A woman may find herself driven to lactate without really knowing why! Induced lactation and relactation, (while being physically pleasure filled in its self), isn’t just about physical pleasure; lactation is a way of reaching a higher plateau of personal awareness for many women. Understanding your need to lactate, and the changes it brings into your daily life, is an integral part of the inducing process.

When a woman lactates, her body chemistry changes, particularly the balance of the chemical neurotransmitters in her brain. Every thing we say, do, think or feel is controlled by the balance of these chemical neurotransmitters! Among other desirable effects, the unique balance created by lactation can bring an inner peace and tranquility like nothing else you will ever experience. And as with many things in life, to succeed with inducing lactation or relactation, you must focus on the personal rewards lactation brings into your daily routine. To be able to focus on these rewards, you must first know what they are!

The personal rewards of lactation are as varied as the personalities of the women who wish to lactate. In addition to the beautiful inner peace and tranquility lactation can bring into a woman’s life, some women find the simple physical pleasure of letdown and lactation to be a powerful incentive. Other women may desire the physical pleasure and emotional bonding of breast feeding their adult partner. And still other women may seek lactation as a path to a higher awareness and spiritual enlightenment. There are many, many reasons why a woman may feel the need to lactate without pregnancy. When preparing to induce lactation or relactate, (even before you plan out the method you want to use to induce lactation), your first course of action should be to contemplate why you feel driven to lactate.

Inducing lactation is a relatively simple procedure; however, it does not come without self-sacrifice and self-discipline, and long-term lactation is definitely not activity to be undertaken on a whim. Depending on your personal physiology and dedication, it can take weeks, even months, to reach a satisfactory flow of milk. Also, it is quite likely that lactation will become a a dominating factor in your daily routine, so take the time to answer these questions, » Why do I feel the need to lactate? » and » What do I expect to get from it? ». Searching for an unknown destination is at best confusing; even more so if you are uncertain as to why you are going there in the first place. Before you begin to induce lactation, come to know your own needs!

You have lived with yourself for a long time; you know the person that you are and the person you want to be. Contemplate what you want your life to be and where you want it to go in the future. Evaluate your life as it is now; plan the changes you want to occur. Even if you are inducing lactation or relactating for your partner, you are doing it because of how it makes you feel inside. As pleasure filled as adult nursing may be for your partner, understand and accept that lactating is something you do for yourself and what it brings into your personal life. Create a new mental image of the person you want to be and the daily routine you want to live. Employ this new image to motivate yourself to move forward, magnifying your inner strength and self-confidence through lactation. Come to know and accept why you feel the need to lactate before you begin the process of inducing lactation or relactating!

The process of inducing lactation isn’t mysterious, nor is it particularly difficult to understand; however, misinformation, (and/or the lack of accurate information), about how milk is produced is one of the biggest causes of failure to lactate. By understanding how the mammary system synthesizes milk and makes it possible to breast feed, the task of inducing lactation becomes not only easier, but also more successful. While there is more than one physical technique of stimulation, there is only one psycho-physiological process to which the mammary system will respond and result in lactation. This article examines how a woman’s emotional state and subconscious thought process interact with the physical elements of the mammary system, making it possible to lactate and breast feed without being pregnant.

Basic Mammary System: Some elements of the mammary system such as, the nipple, areola, milk ducts, milk sinuses, montgomery glands, and mammary glands are utilized only in the process of lactation and breast feeding. While other elements of the mammary system such as, the lymphatic system, nervous system, pituitary gland, hypothalamus, thalamus, hormones, and brain are multi-functional, making them not only essential to lactation but also necessary for the normal function of other organs in the body. The brain, (including the secretion and balance of chemical neurotransmitters), is central to all body functions, and paramount in the process of inducing lactation. Note: The uterus is affected by the milk producing hormone oxytocin, but is not part of the milk producing process.

Breast and Mammary Glands: Inside each adult breast, regardless of size or shape, is approximately 4000 tiny milk producing cells or mammary exocrine glands. (Exocrine glands secrete their fluids directly into ducts, while endocrine glands secrete their fluids directly into the bloodstream). Each of the individual exocrine glands consists of a single milk producing cell connected to a tiny bladder like structure called an alveoli sac. Milk is synthesized in the milk producing cells from body fluids, and secreted into the alveoli sacs. The individual exocrine glands, (milk producing cells and alveoli sacs), are clustered together in approximately 40 separate lobes. (Lobes are rounded, sac like structures in the body). Each of these lobes is considered a single mammary gland. These lobes are arranged around the nipple in the shape of a rosette, or like the spokes of a wheel, and connected to the nipple through an elaborate network of interconnecting milk ducts and milk sinuses. The remainder breast is made up of fat and body fluids, which give support to the mammary glands, milk ducts, and blood vessels. Note: The size and shape of a woman’s breast does not increase, nor decrease her ability to induce lactation or the amount of milk she may be able to produce.

Nipple, Areola, Milk ducts and Hormones: The interconnecting network of milk ducts culminate behind the nipple into approximately 15 to 30 milk sinuses. (Milk sinuses are small enlargements at the end of each milk duct, which store minute amounts of milk). It is from these sinuses that milk is suckled through the nipple. Small pimple like bumps which appear on the surface of the areola are montgomery glands, which during lactation become slightly enlarged, and secrete a substance that helps lubricate and protect the nipple and areola. When being stimulated by massage or suckling, nerves contained within the skin of the nipple and areola send signals, (in the form of electrical impulses), to the brain. These electrical impulses signal for the release of the essential milk producing hormones, prolactin and oxytocin. Prolactin and oxytocin are released from the pituitary gland, hypothalamus, and thalamus, where it is carried to each individual mammary gland and milk duct, via the blood stream. Prolactin stimulates each milk producing cell, causing it to synthesize milk from body fluids, and secrete it into the alveoli sac. Specialized skin cells, (called myoepithelial cells), in the walls of the milk ducts are stimulated by oxytocin. When stimulated by oxytocin, myoepithelial cells contract causing the milk to move from the alveoli sacs, through the interconnecting milk ducts, to the milk sinuses behind the nipple where it can be suckled. Note: During lactation, the nipple and areola may become noticeably larger in size and darker in color. The breast may also become noticeably larger and fuller in appearance.

First Stage of Induced Lactation: The first noticeable sign of induced lactation is the secretion of clear fluids from the nipple. The clear fluids are mostly water and sugars, but may also contain a small amount of salt. After beginning breast and nipple stimulation with a combination massage, suckling, and/or breast pumping, clear fluids may appear as early as the second day, and usually no later than the end of the second week. During the clear fluid stage, the milk producing cells are maturing from their dormant state into fully developed milk producing glands, but have not yet begun to synthesize milk. There is no set duration for the clear fluid stage. For a woman who is relactating, after having recently breast fed, this stage may be hardly noticeable; however, for a woman who has never lactated or breast fed, this stage may last several weeks.

During this period the pituitary gland, and to a lesser extent the thalamus and hypothalamus, are just beginning to respond to increased demands for higher levels of the essential milk producing hormones, prolactin and oxytocin. Prolactin and oxytocin levels rarely increase at equal rates, and it is not uncommon to experience the milk let-down reflex well before actual milk appears. Milk let-down occurs when the milk ducts are stimulated by elevated levels of oxytocin, causing the milk to move toward the nipple. This phenomena may be identified by a temporary tingling, or mild stinging, in the breasts as the milk begins to move through the milk ducts. Because both the milk ducts and the uterus are primarily made up of myoepithelial cells, which contract when stimulated by oxytocin, a woman may also experience a phenomena know as uterine flutter, (a pulsation of rapid contractions within the uterus), during the milk let-down reflex. When a woman experiences the milk let down reflex and/or uterine flutter, it is a good sign that oxytocin secretion is increasing as it should.

As fatty tissues within the breasts increase the amount of fluids being stored, some swelling and soreness may occur. The use of warm compresses while pumping, and breast massage while in a warm shower may relieve some of the soreness, as well as help stimulate dormant milk glands into mature milk producing glands. The secretion of clear fluids, combined with a noticeable milk let-down reflex, is usually a clear sign that oxytocin secretion has risen to adequate levels, but the secretion of prolactin is still below the level necessary to synthesize clear body fluids into milk. The second level of induced lactation is signaled when prolactin secretion rises to levels necessary to produce breast milk.

The technique for inducing lactation without being pregnant is exceptionally simple: physically stimulate the nipple and areola, and the body will respond by making milk! Forget about milk inducing drugs and exotic techniques: all it takes is stimulation!

The best and most reliable way to induce lactation is to dry breast feed your nursing partner for 20 minutes, eight times each day. Don’t let your partner suck just on the nipple; make sure he or she is latched on in the same manner as a nursing infant would latch onto it’s mother’s breast. In the beginning, even without milk, relax and breast feed your partner, just as you would as if you breasts were full of milk. In time, your body will respond to the suckling by producing milk.

If your schedule won’t permit eight nursing sessions each day; reduce the number of sessions to what you can comfortably handle. Women have successfully induced lactation with as little as two breast feeding sessions each day; however, the sessions do need to be at least 20 minutes long. Keeping in mind: the closer to eight nursing sessions each day you are able to have, the better the results will be.

If you do not have a willing or reliable nursing partner, you may substitute suckling with hand massage of the breast, and finger stimulation of the nipple and areola. You may use a breast pump if you wish; however, hand expression will work just as well. Eight, 20 minute stimulation sessions each day is still optimum for inducing lactation, even without a reliable nursing partner. If your schedule will not permit eight sessions each day, you may reduce the number of sessions to what you can comfortably handle. But again, the closer to eight nursing sessions each day you are able to have, the better the results will be.

DO NOT OVER COMPLICATE THE TECHNIQUE! Quite simply put: your body will respond to the need for milk by producing milk! It is a mistake to overcomplicate your method of inducing lactation. Keep it simple!

If you are breast feeding your nursing partner to induce lactation, his or her mouth should provide enough lubrication to prevent chaffing of the nipple and areola. If you are inducing lactation by using hand and finger stimulation, you may need to use a lubricant to prevent chaffing. There are several products on the market specifically for lubricating and protecting the nipples and areolas of women who are breast feeding. A warm shower is a good time to stimulate; the water will help lubricate and the warmth will help relax your breasts.

In the beginning, expect your breasts to swell and become sore. To lactate, the lymph system in your breasts have to undergo certain changes; the result is temporary soreness. You may notice soreness particularly around the outer edges of the breasts, near your armpits. Even though the soreness is temporary, the increase in cup size will likely remain as long as you are lactating.

If you have never been pregnant, and never had milk, the process may take a little longer. Even though mammary glands mature during puberty, the glands have to undergo minor changes before they will actually produce milk: this will add time to the process of inducing. Once mammary glands have produced milk for the first time, they never go back to the way they were. Mammary glands of a woman who has breast fed in the past are always be ready to produce milk again. After breast feeding for the first time, some women never completely dry up. It is not unusual for a woman to be able to express a drop or two, even years after she has breast fed.

Don’t look for drugs or exotic techniques to inducing lactation: this simple technique of physical stimulation is all there is to successfully inducing lactation. Once past puberty: as long as a woman’s mammary glands are healthy and have not been altered or surgically removed, a woman’s breasts are completely capable of producing milk! This is true for women who have never been pregnant, women who have gone through menopause, and even women who have had a hysterectomy. The presence of a uterus, and/or ovaries, is not required for a woman to lactate: the only thing that is required is healthy breasts and a desire to lactate.

This really is all there is to the physical technique of inducing lactation; HOWEVER, there is one more factor involved: YOU HAVE TO HAVE A REASON!

As long as healthy mammary glands are supplied with body fluids, the hormones Oxytocin and Prolactin, and stimulated electrically, they will produce milk indefinitely! The main obstacle that prevents a woman from producing milk when inducing lactation is not physical technique; it is psychological! The brain has to send an electrical signal, via the nervous system, to stimulate the mammary gland before the mammary gland will make milk!

Mammary glands, like every other part of our body, is controlled by the brain, particularly, a subconscious portion of the brain. If the brain perceives nipple and areola stimulation to be sexual only, the brain will respond by creating a feeling of sexual pleasure only. If the brain perceives nipple and areola stimulation to be the need for milk, the brain will respond by sending an electrical signal, via the nervous system, causing the milk to letdown and the mammary glands to produce milk. The breasts will continue to make milk as long as the brain continues to send electrical signals, stimulating the mammary glands. Also if the brain perceives nipple and areola stimulation to be for both sexual pleasure and the need for milk, it will respond by creating both.

When a mother begins to breast feed her child, she automatically focuses her subconscious mind on making milk. It is this subconscious mental image that causes her brain to send the signal to her mammary glands to letdown and make milk! In addition to sexual arousal caused by nipple stimulation, a woman who inducing lactation must also create the mental image of making milk, in the same manner that a nursing mother would.

The physical technique of inducing lactation is very simple, (physically stimulate the nipples and areolas), however, creating the mental scenario that results in the brain stimulating the mammary glands into milk production is a little more involved. At the same time, once the subconscious has been trained to correctly respond to stimulation, little else matters: you will be able to letdown when you need, and produce milk in whatever quantities needed. As we can see in the example of spontaneous letdown and leakage: when a woman is properly stimulated mentally, she will letdown and produce milk. All physical stimulation does is tell your brain, when and how much milk to make!

Whether dry nursing your partner to induce lactation, or hand massage, finger stimulation and breast pumping, choose a physical technique you are comfortable with and enjoy: then focus on training your subconscious to respond to making milk instead of, or in conjunction with, sexual arousal. The secret to inducing lactation is creating a proper mental state that will cause the brain to stimulate the breasts to letdown, and mammary glands to make milk. How long it takes to lactate, depends entirely on how long it takes you to decide to create the proper mental state! How much milk you will be able to produce will depend on how much milk you want.

Is it really possible for a woman, who is not pregnant, to induce lactation and breast feed? The answer, without a doubt, is yes. Potentially every woman who is self-confident, in good mental health, and whose breasts are physically sound can induce lactation and breast feed. Lactation, whether induced or postpartum, is not dependent on any of the sexual organs, rather it is the result of a positive mental attitude, physical stimulation of the breasts, and brain chemistry. This is true for women who have never been pregnant, as well as women who are post-hysterectomy or post-oophorectomy. For most women, the ability to lactate and breast feed typically begins in the teen years, and extends well past the child bearing years. Even though nipple and breast stimulation often cause sexual arousal, the mammary system functions independently of the reproductive organs, making it possible to induce lactation and breast feed without having been pregnant. The quality of milk and the physical means by which a woman lactates, after having artificially induced lactation, is identical to postpartum lactation with the exception of the production of colostrum. Colostrum, which is normally produced for the first few days postpartum, is not produced during the process of induced lactation or relactation. Physical techniques of suckling, methods of increasing lactation, and care of the breasts are the same for induced lactation as it is for postpartum lactation. The only differences between induced lactation and postpartum lactation is the method by which the essential milk producing hormones are stimulated into production and the lack of colostrum.

Inducing lactation isn’t new, nor is it particularly difficult. In 1935, while studying the social structure of primitive cultures in New Guinea, American anthropologist Margaret Meade Ph.D. recorded her observations of infants, whose mothers had died in child birth or for other reasons were unable to breast feed, being put to the breast of non-lactating women. After a period of being stimulated by the infant’s suckling, the adoptive mother was able to induce lactation and produce enough breast milk to sustain the infant. Dr. Meade was one of the first western anthropologists to observe, and later write about how primitive cultures provided care for orphaned infants through induced lactation. This method of induced lactation was basic and not always successful; however, it is one of the first recorded examples of induced lactation being practiced openly within a culture. In the beginning of the process, because there was little or no milk, the nipple would be coated with mashed fruits or other soft foods, and the infant would be placed at each nipple to suckle. The sweetness of the mashed fruit would serve to encourage the child to continue suckling until the volume of milk was high enough to sustain the infant, and also to temporarily supplement the nutritional needs of the child. The low volume of milk also made it necessary to nurse the child more often. This high frequency of suckling, until the breasts were completely drained, served to rapidly increase the milk supply: because the amount of breast milk produced is in direct proportion the need, (or hunger), of the child. Until recent years, modern induced lactation techniques and hormone enhancing medications were unavailable to primitive cultures isolated in remote regions. Because of this isolation, aboriginal cultures commanded an uninhibited self-reliance with child rearing. Out of necessity and natural maternal instincts, this simple method of inducing lactation and breast feeding evolved. With these adoptive mothers, there was a complete absence of self doubt or even a single thought of being unable to induce lactation. Self-confidence is one of the key factors in successfully lactating without being pregnant.

The practices of induced lactation and relactation have succeeded for centuries without being well documented. During the 18th, 19th, and early part of the 20th century when the United States was being settled, people often turned to wet nurses for help when an infant was orphaned or the mother was unable to produce enough breast milk to feed her newborn child. A wet nurse is a woman who is able to easily induce lactation and produce enough milk to breast feed an infant, while not having been pregnant herself. At a time in American history when there were too few doctors and even fewer hospitals, complications in child birth and infant care were not uncommon, and a woman who could step in and serve as a surrogate nursing mother was a boon to small towns and rural communities. Unfortunately due to Victorian attitudes of the time, the methods used to stimulate and maintain lactation by wet nurses were rarely discussed and almost never recorded in public documents. Because of this, there are few accurate records of wet nursing from that period. Of the few early accounts of wet nursing that still exist, (mostly through family records), there are indications that at least some wet nurses maintained high levels of lactation through out their adult lives, even after their own children were grown. Because a woman does not normally maintain a full state of lactation without being suckled, it isn’t difficult to imagine that many of these women were likely in an adult nursing relationship during periods when their services as a wet nurse wasn’t needed. It is true, there has always been a few women who naturally have higher levels of milk producing hormones in their blood stream, and are able to induce lactation more easily than the average woman; however, this condition exists only in a small percentage of the female population and would not account for the number of wet nurses that existed in early America. Considering the emotional desires and needs of loving couples in the early American culture, (or for that matter, any culture), would be no different than the desires and needs of couples today, it isn’t difficult to conclude that not only has induced lactation been practiced through out history, it is equally probable that adult nursing has been practiced as well.

It wasn’t until the mid-twentieth century, with the onset of mass produced baby formulas and nursing products, that the practice of wet nursing to began to fall out of public favor. Prior to this time, breast feeding wasn’t just the most popular way to feed infants: it was the only way. With the fast pace of life today, and the wide availability of baby formulas and nursing products, many women never consider breast feeding. In many western industrialized nations, not only has breast feeding fallen out of favor in public opinion, it has almost become taboo. Because of social taboos and false stereotyping of female life styles, many women are unaware that lactation is even possible without first being pregnant, when in reality inducing lactation and breast feeding are perfectly natural elements within a woman’s individualism. With the advent of the Internet and the World Wide Web, couples all over the world are discovering they are not alone in their desire for a more intimate relationship. This is especially true for women who are discovering their desire to be suckled by their husband or lover, not just in foreplay but in a full time adult nursing relationship, isn’t unusual or uncommon. The desire to experience the intimacy and inner peace that comes through breast feeding isn’t just limited to postpartum child rearing, it is a normal emotion shared by many woman throughout their adult life. The female mammary system is the product of countless centuries of human evolution, as is her entire physical body. The fact that a woman can induce lactation is an indication that not only has induced lactation been a common practice for countless generations, so has adult nursing. If there had been no need for the ability to lactate and breast feed outside of postpartum child rearing, the female mammary system would not have evolved with the ability to induce lactation outside of pregnancy. The ability to induce lactation or relactate is a perfectly normal part of a woman’s physiology and her desire to adult nurse is a perfectly normal part of an adult male/female relationship. More and more couples today are discovering the corporeal intimacy and spiritual inner peace that is part of adult nursing.